I got POOPED on in PRAGUE!

I got pooped on in Prague...literally. More on that later...

After flying to Frankfurt, Germany for the day (Frankfurt was not that cool. The city was destroyed during WWII, only rebuilt in the past 2 decades or so, and is now known as a business center, so it was pretty much a mini modern city with not much to see), Ale and I arrived in Prague around midnight on Monday. I have to say that Prague was the city I was most looking forward to seeing in Europe; but I was disappoionted. There are a lot of really beautiful and really old sights to see here, but the city seemed lifeless to me. I couldn't really pinpoint it. One possible explanation could be that it is not that long ago since the Czech Republic was under Communist rule...I don't know...something about the city just seemed so dark. The scenery is beautiful, but I could never live here.

Our 2 days in Prague were spent walking around and exploring. Our hotel was in the Old Town part of the city which was settled in the 1200's. The New Town (only new compared to the Old Town...it was settled in the 1300's) is just on the other side of the Vltava River. Since the city is so old (like 5 times as old as America) the architecture is a mix of Gothic, Renaissance, boroque and neoclassical. The city's layout is somewhat of a maze an streets and pedestrian-only lanes weave their way among the old buildings. We took a tour up to Prague Castle, which is actually many castles and a cathedral put together which was pretty cool. The castle was high up on a hill so a bus drove us up, we toured the castle and cathedral, and walked our way back down through the castle gardens and city streets. The view of the city was beautiful up there. We also got to see Charles Bridge...which was beautiful and full of street vendors and musicians, a bunch of old churches (which is wierd because the country was communist and everyone is athiest), the Jewish quarter, and the Astronomical clock which has a bell-ringing skeleton on the hour. We also ate some pretty awesome Czeck food. They eat really heavily...meats, graveys, breads. Lunch is enough to last you the rest of the day. No need for dinner.

**Funny note...as we were walking around the street vendors, one had a stand for those russian dolls...you know, the ones where you open the first one to reveal another doll. Then you open that doll and there's another inside that. I found one set of CUBS players! Seriously! They had Lee, Ramirez, Theriot, Soto, and Fukodome! Crazy. I totally would have bought it but the guy wanted like 8000 Czech Crown for it which was the equavelent to 20 Euro or $30. Total rip off! But I did take a picture...its posted on facebook!

Despite all of this, Prague is kind of a shady city as well. Ale and I had an uncomfortable situation at one of those Asian stores when the lady tried to charage Ale the equivelent of $50 for 2 AA batteries which were not even in a package...they could have been dead for all we knew. Ha! We have heard that the Czeck people try to intimidate and swindle foreigners, but we didn't think the ghetto markets where THEY don't even speak Czech would... Also, one night after going out, we were headed back to our hotel when this black-American guy approached us and was like "hey ladies, where's the party?" We had seen several groups of black guys hanging out together with pamphlets and who knows what else. We were like, "uh...at home" and kept walking, but he kept asking us to let him show us where the parties are at. Finally, I was like, "yah, and what else are you selling?" and he just smiled, laughed and said "What do you think?" I'm not sure what he meant, but I'm pretty sure I didn't want to know. We also had a funny encounter with an American guy. He approached us and asked us if we knew English. Yes, of course we do, and when we said so he was like "Oh man, like as in you are not from here know English?" We think he was high. We told him we were from the US and he was like "Shiiiiiiit Man. I need to get home to the TV Tower." Yes, at that point we knew he was definitely high. I don't know where the TV tower was, but I was pretty sure it was no where near Old Town Square where we met him.

On Tuesday night, Ale and I had a late start going out. It happened to be the night of the Michael Jackson tribute. It was on every TV channel and we totally got sucked in! We are talking, glued to the TV, tears streaming down both of our faces, sucked in! I mean, come on...the "Heal the World" song with all of those kids singing and then the daughters speech. We lost it...When it was over, I felt like such a loser! There seriously has been Michael Jackson make-shift memorials and programs on TV and his music playing in EVERY city we've been to so far...UGH! We came to our senses very quickly, got ready and headed out for a night on the town...which turned out to be pretty lame. Perhaps the place our consierge told us to go were not great, but it turned out to be an early night for us.

So about getting pooped on...Ale and I were walking down a pedestrain street taking in the sights and sounds of the Old Town in Prague, and all of a sudden I felt something wet on the back of my leg. When I finally looked to see what it was, it was POOP! I'm still wondering how it got on the back of my leg; but the crazy thing is, is that this isn't the first time this has happened to me! When I lived in San Diego, a bird pooped and hit the front of my leg. Wierd!

On Wednesday evening, we took an overnight train to Vienna, Austria. It kind of sucked. We got to the station extremely early because Ale had heard that these trains sometimes oversell so we didn't want to get stuck sleeping in the hallway...which is exactly what happened. When the conductor came to take our tickets, she told us we had to move a few carraiges back because the train was going to split and the car we were in was heading to Budapest. When we got to the Vienna car, there were absolutely NO seats. Actually, there were, but people were sleeping and taking up 2 seats. They would wake up and see us, but go back to sleep. I have been experiencing this over and over again...Europeans are so rude. Several of us where in the hallway for several hours. Luckily, about 4 hours into the 6 hour trip, some people got off and we were able to take their seats and get some sleep. I will definitely be skeptical of taking an overnight train again...

Ich liebe Berlin!

I <3 Berlin

If Berlin had a baseball team and a beach, I would totally live her forever. This is such a great city....rich in history, rich in culture, scenic in view, and the people are so incredibly nice!

Day 1 in Berlin was America's Independence Day for me. Ale and I began our exploration shortly after lunchtime and hit most of the major touristy spots on the first day...The Brandenburg Gate, the Parliament Building, Check Point Charlie, the remnants of the Berlin Wall. I feel like there is so much to learn here...so much history to take in. There was no way were going to hit everything in our short time here...guess its just all the more reason to go back : ) At one point, we walked near the Brandenburg Gate which opens up into a big square. The police had gathered all around the square and people were inside with megaphones and chanting and cheering for something...it turned out to be a major protest going on. Ale said they were Socialists because of the flags they were carrying. I heard later that they were protesting the conflict in Iran. Kind of neat to see. Aside from all of the scenic monuments and buildings, my favorite part of Berlin was the museum at Check Point Charlie. Check Point Charlie was the American military checkpoint in Berlin between Eastern and Western Germany. The checkpoint is actually still there in the middle of the street, and while the Berlin wall has since long been removed, they still have a cobblestone walkway that marks the wall running throughout the entire city. The museum itself has tons of photos, artifacts and stories of everything ranging from the Russian-American tensions at Check Point Charlie during the Cold War, to Kennedy's visit to Berlin, to the Eastern German's escape attempts and the deaths that occurred along the wall. It was really moving. A few blocks down the road, there is also a section of the Berlin wall that still stands. Its so strange to just stand in front of it and try to comprehend everything it represented and all that happened in the shadows of that wall...

After a long day of exploring the city, Ale and I came back to the hotel, took a short nap, and then got ready to go out. The nice Sweedish boy at the front desk gave us some nice "nightlife" areas to explore, and we made our way out under the lights of Berlin. After walking up and down the main strip, we made our way to an Indonesian outdoor bar and had a few cocktails and just talked for an hour or 2. After, we wanted to find a more happening place to celebrate my Independence Day, so we made our way to an indoor/outdoor club nearby. There, we met 2 English boys and 3 Aussies who we ended up hanging out with for the rest of the evening. The English guys (Andy and Sean Michael Murry) told me they would celebrate the 4th with me because it was the day they "got rid of us" ...a good reason to celebrate! They were joking of course. Ale mostly hung out with the Aussies who asked really stupid questions like "Can you get Aids from sharing a cigarette?" Ahhh...Yah! The rest of the night included dancing, talking...I exchanged contact information with the boys from London in hopes of meeting up with them when I visit there later this month. Overall, it was a great evening that ended much too late...but hey, I'm in Europe! Its OK to act like a college kid again right?!?

Day 2 in Berlin began as a continuation of the Disaster in Dusseldorf. Ale got up early and made her way to the Berlin airport only to find that Ryan Air did NOT put her bag on the plane to Berlin that morning. She wanted to cry. The Ryan Air employee simply told her that she got "confused" and would put it on a flight tonight (Sunday night as I write this...) so we can just pick it up as we pass throught the aiport on our way to Frankfurt and Prague tomorrow. At this point, this situation as become so ridiculous that we aren't even expecting to see her baggage ever again. So, we are sharing my 4 outfits that are still wearable between the 2 of us and making the best of things...

Ale and I went back to the Indonesian resturant we were at last night for lunch because the menu looked interesting. I had Chicken Mandasi which was super yummy but super spicy! After lunch,. we made our way to one of those double-decker city tour busses and spent the next 2 hours crusing around the city, getting pictures, and learning about the major sites. It is sooooo interesting here because they are so willing to talk about the cold war and the conflict between East and West Berlin, but we have seen absolutely NOTHING when it comes to WWII. Sure, there are some postcards you can buy with pictures of the buildings bombed out, but none of the tours talked about anything that had to do with the war, nor do any of the tourist attractions have any literature or information about WWII events. Its like Hitler never even existed here. I sort of get it. I bet most Germans are ashamed of what happened, but still, it is a part of history that I'd like to experience here.

On a side note, the people here are so friendly. I was a bit nervous coming here without Laura because neither Ale or I speak any German, but everyone I've met has been incredibly awesome about it unlike in other European coutries that I've heard about. There was the guy at the train when we arrived who spoke no English at all, but was so willing to help us. That has happened several times here. Even when we didn't need help (i.e. if we were looking at the map on the street or something) people would approach us to ask us if we needed help. Here in the city, I figured I can get by with ordering and paying for a coke without any translation of languages, but as soon as most people hear the American accent, they not only start speaking English to me, but they engage us in coversation about other things. Even the bus tour guy started speaking to Ale in Spanish. It is incredible how friendly people are here...especially considering the "German stereotype" and the few German people I know from home. Its like two completely different worlds of people. After the bus tour, we went to Madame Toussant's wax museum and spent a few hours taking goofy pictures with some of the more prominent historical and pop culture figures of Germany! That evening, we walked around the city some more before returning to our hotel before we got the call that Ale's bag had arrived at the Berlin airport! She is so untrusting of these people at this point, that we both hopped the train/bus back to the airport at 11pm tonight just to go pick it up. It was there! Ale is a much happier camper (I think). It is now almost 1am here. I need to get up at 4:30am to head back to the airport where we will fly to and spend the day in Frankfurt before flying to Prague tomorrow evening. So long, Berlin. I <3 You!

DISASTER IN DUSSELDORF!

Disaster in Dusseldorf! X3!!!

So after braving the rain storm inside the airport in Dublin, tolerating the lovely 10-hour layover in Santander, Ale and I reunited, caught up over dinner in the airport, and caught our flight to Dusseldorf where her friend Laura would meet us at the airport and take us to her home to stay the night. Laura had lived with Ale in Spain last year when she was studying Spanish for a few months on holiday during school. Unfortunatly, when we arrived at the airport in Dusseldorf, Ale's bag was nowhere to be found. Disaster #1! Thank goodness Laura was there because the 2 young girls at the lost baggage desk did not seem at all interested in helping us until she started speaking German to them. They still were really of no use. We just got a number to call in the morning which was only supposed to tell us "if" they knew where the bag was...totally crappy! Remember in the last post when I said I LOVED European airlines...not so much anymore!

The Dusseldorf-Wein airport is probably an hour away from the actual city of Dusseldorf. After the long drive back to Laura's, we met her parents (who she still lives with...apparently it is customary to live with your parents while you are still studying in most places in Europe) and older sister, toured her home (a 3-floor flat...totally cool) and got situated for bed because we are sooooo tired. That is when I discoverd, that the entire contents of my suitcase were soaking wet! Disaster #2! When I had left Dublin that day, there was a HUGE rain storm. The only that that I can deduce is that my bag was left out in that storm for a LONG time, so for the past 18 hours or so, my clothes had been sitting wet and smashed together in my bag. As I began to unpack and air out my things, I discovered that my new purple scarf had bled all over most of my clothes too...including my brand new white dress, white shorts, and a few of my other favorite outfits. I tried to was them out, but the dye wouldn't budge. Of the 10 full outfit options I had planned with the clothes I brought, about 4 are still in tact. SUCKY! Our new Euro Trip mantra is "Ryan Air F**** SUCKS! (btw...people really have poor mouths here! I don't normally swear, but Ryan Air has made me mad enough that, Yes, the f-bomb and a few other choice words describing that company have come out of my mouth these past few days)! We were beginning to think this vacation was turning into something like the movie "Eurotrip." YIKES!

The next morning (Saturday), Laura's father called the airline and they told him that Ale's bag had ended up in London and that they could send it back to Dusseldoff that evening so we could pick it up the following morning when we checked in for our flight to Berlin. GREAT! So Laura, Ale and I decided to get ready and take the train (like the el in Chicago) to go explore Dusseldorf for a while and return early afternoon because Laura's parents were hosting a "traditional" German BBQ. Yeah! My first taste of German food! Dusseldorf is a great little city. There is the old part of town on the Rhine River which is really beautiful. All of the buildings have a lot of character and it was exactly what I pictured "old" Germany to be. We later went to the newer part of town where they had the typical high-end shopping district. Again, it was pretty nice, but pretty typical for the "main street" of most modern cities these days. At least Ale was able to buy some necessities until she would be reunited with her bag. We ate lunch at an outdoor cafe along the river. I had some sort of traditional German meat with gravy, cabbage, and these wierd mashed potatos that had the consistency of Jello. It wasn't as disgusting as it sounds. As we were eating, a storm began to roll in. We moved inside and had a few drinks until the heavy rain moved out, then made our way back to the train station to get back to Laura's house for the BBQ.

Ale and I were super tired from all of the traveling the day before and the walking around that morning, so we decided to take a nap before the party in the evening. Our naps were great...until we were awaken by a HUGE crack of thunder/lightening and the smell of something burning. Disaster #3! The storm that had rolled in earlier had turned into an all out thunder storm and it appeared that lightening had hit Laura's house as a circuit was blown and the phones didn't work. The street out in front of her street was completely flooded and we got about an hour's worth of entertainment watching the many cars drive by trying to make the decision of if/how they would cross. One guy made his girlfriend get out of the car and go test how deep the water was in the middle of the flood. Then, he decided to drive up on the lawns of the homes to get by...the girlfriend had to stay out of the car and guide the bf around the posts, bushes, etc...I would be sooo ticked at my boyfriend if I was that girl : ) Needless to say, the BBQ was cancelled, but Laura's mom still cooked up some really excellent sausages, salads, and breads and we spent the evening just chatting about anything and everything.

Some time later, we heard on the radio that the Dusseldorf airport had been closed. This worried us because Ale's bag was supposed to fly in from London that night. After several phone calls, we discoverd that the plan had indeed not landed in Dusseldorf but was delayed and would be rerouted to The Netherlands until it was allowed to land at Dusseldorf. The Dusseldorf airport does not allow landings after 11pm which did not look likely. They assured us that if the bag did not make it to Dusseldorf, that it would meet us in Berlin the following day. Fine. Ryan Air f**** sucks. The rain has stopped after dinner, the street had cleared, so Laura, Ale and I decided to make our way to a small suburb called Duisburg to get some ice cream and walk around for a while. Not much was going on so we returned home to get a good night's sleep because we had to leave at 4am to catch our flight to Berlin in the morning.

So that is where we are now. We arrived in Berlin early this morning. Ale's bag was not in Dusseldorf and it has been promised to arrive tomorrow (Sunday) morning at the Berlin airport where we will have to go pick it up because Ryan Air will NOT deliver it to our hotel. This is definitely putting a damper on our trip for her. Our spirits were brightened briefly when we met a little old German man while transferring trains to the city, who while he spoke no English at all, insisted on helping us get to our destination. He was very grandfatherly-like, and so incredibly nice. He kept saying this word, "Spandou" which we still have not figured out what it means, but it was super cute as he just keping saying this to us. Hopefully it isn't something scandalous!

Fortunatly, we were able to check into our room right away when we arrived downtown Berlin even though we were super early. Ale is taking a nap. I just got done washing out the entire contents of my bag with laundry detergent because even though I had dried them out, my entire bag still smelled like "Rain water". Ryan Air f**** sucks. Hopefully Berlin is a cool city...I'm off to explore...

What the Craic, Ireland?

So my European Adventure has begun...First stop, Dublin, Ireland!

The night before I left, I had tried to stay up all night so as to sleep on the plane and be fresh and ready to go once I got there; however, of course I sat next to the most chattiest Cathy EVER during the flight! He was a young Polish guy named Bart, and he turned out ot be quite an interesting character. He was moving permantly back to London after a stint working for Nordstroms in the States. He had actually worked all over the world and he was a great resourse for things to see and do while I'm over here. We pretty much spent the entire 8 hour flight talking, playing video games, trivia and watching movies...and can I just say how much I love European airlines. I had my own flat screen-touch screen TV in my seat. They had an assortment of free, recent movies and TV episodes to choose from. There were also about 20 video games, several generes of radio stations, an online shopping channel, and a really cool feature where you could not only track your flight across the globe, but it also showed you things like daylight moving across the globe, etc. It was pretty cool. Oh yah, and the food was fantastic as well.

What the Craic? (procounced "crack"...probably Gailic) is a local saying that is similar to our "What the heck?" I had several "What the Craic" moments while in Ireland.

One of the first things I noticed when landing was that nothing is squared off here. The plots of land, the streets...nothing is on a grid pattern. It seems as that people just arbitrarily plotted out their farms and built roads without any thought to the planning process. The roads proved to be somewhat difficult for me until Dave sort of explained it. More on that later. I bought a bus ticket and took the bus into the city. The guy told me to get off at O'Connell street, which would have been easy enough except for 1. None of the streets are easily marked, as in there were no street signs on the corners telling you which cross section you were at. 2. There are no route maps on the bus and/or paper ones at the stops to take with you. and 3. The busses wind up and down all different roads every which way. Its not like there is a #22 Clark St. bus that just goes up and down Clark. Thank goodness I asked the driver because I had missed my stop by 2 stations. Not really a big deal, but it was just really conflusing.

Second. Again, this is another "wrong side" nation. As you leave the airport, there is a sign in 3 or so languages reminding you to dirve on the left side of the road. Then, some intersections have traffic lights and most have round-a-bouts. And since a lot of the streets are one-way streets, it didn't really make sense to me why the even need round-a-bouts in some places, but whatever.

When I first arrived at my hotel the room wasn't ready, so the nice man (American, used to live in Chicago, and knew my sister...small world), took my luggage, gave me a map, and I set out to explore Grafton Street, the main shoppig district in town, and coincidentally enouch, right outside my hotel. It wasn't anything to write home about (as I am writing home about it...hahahaha). More of the stores than not can be found in the states. There were a few Irish touristy storefronts, but the street itself was cool because it was made of bricks, no cars were allowed on it, and there were artists and street musicians all up and down performing creating a festival-like atmosphere. There was even a Michael Jackson tribute area with flowers, pictures, notes, candles, etc. Crazy. Before heading back to get my room, I stopped at a place called Brewleys for lunch. There I had my first Irish coffee, which was just like Killian makes them. I also had a Pear Cider and BLT (the Irish kind) for lunch. Super Yummy. As I was sitting there, I met an American college student from West Virginia who was doing a marketing internship in Dublin. She was on her lunch break, noticed my accent, and we struck up a pleasant conversation.

After lunch I was able to get into my hotel room. It was GREAT! Spacious, overlooked the main part of the street, and of course as is signature with all Westins, it had a heavenly bed. I took a long nap when I arrived as I was dead tired, but that proved to be incredibly detrimental to my body adjusting to the time zone change. I'm still not feeling quite adjuested yet, but I guess that comes with the territory.

I woke up from my nap around 10pm and decided to get ready and go walk around Temple Bar for a while. Temple Bar is the main strip where all the young people go to party. The street was a brick-loned pedestrian-only street and every bar had live music and plenty of drunken Irishmen. It almost resembled Marti Gras in some establishments...mind you this was a Monday night. I stepped into one bar...the Oliver St. something or other, drank a cider, swore off a couple of drunken Irish advances at me, and finally made my way back home to "really" get a good nights' sleep.

The next morning I went exploring some of the more touristy sights Dublin has to offer. In the morning, I made my way to Dublin Castle and Christ Church. Both were really beautiful places to see, full of history. I didn't stay too long at each, just enought time to walk around and take some photos. For lunch, I made my way back towards Trinity College and found a cute little pub called "The Blarney Inn." There I had the traditional Irish mean of fish and chips, and ordered another Irish Coffee. Even better than the first one! The waitor in there was entertaining as well. He kept calling me beautiful and talked to me about my trip and what I should do next in Dublin. I also met a nice American father-daughter duo from Texas and we exchanged ideas and suggestions about what we had seen and wanted to see during the duration of our trips. It is so easy to just strick up a conversation with people here. The Irish are very nice.

After lunch I made my way inside Trinity College, walked around the campus for a while which was incredibly old (the first university established in Ireland by Queen Victoria) and incredibly beautiful. There, they house the Book of Kells which is an ornantly decorated trancript of the four Gospels dating back to the 1600's. It was a neat sight to see. After Trinity, I walked around some more and found myself in the National Gallery of Ireland which houses all of their important Art collections. I was especially fond of Jack Yeate's collection. He is the brother of Irish poet, WIlliam Butler Yeates. Interesting stuff...

Since everything closes at 5pm, I went back to my hotel to get ready because my friend Mike (who I had spent a summer in San Diego with) had hooked me up with his friend Dave who is from Dublin. We had planned to meet for dinner. Dave was a great guy. We first went to this little cafe for dinner where we just kind of talked and got to know each other. Later, he we walked around Grafton Street and a huge park and continued to talk. I learned a lot of neat things from Dave. For example...he showed took me to the pub that is best known for puring the best pint of Guinness. I did order my first Guinness here. See the pictures on facebook for my reaction : ). He also took me past a bar that supposedly stored a rocking chair owned by JFK. Now those are things you don't get in your guide books. I also learned that the Irish pronounce the letter r as "or." It took me quite a while to figure out that he was talking about the show ER one evening.

The next day (Wedensday) I had planned a trip to County Kerry by train to explore where my family came from. The day turned out to be absolutely AMAZING even though it started with me walking about a half hour in the pouring rain to the train station! My jeans were soaked, but luckily I was able to dry out on the train and the weather held the rest of the day. On the train on the way to Kerry, I sat across from a couple from California, who after about a half hour of conversation I discovered had been campus directors on U. of Iowa's campus with Campus Crusade for Christ. Not only that, they were very good friends with the Foxworths...Debra Foxworth was my Bible Study leader and mentor during college. Such a small world! They got off the train about an hour before I did, we said our goodbyes, and promised to keep in touch. An hour later, I reached Kilarney in County Kerry where a cute little old Irishman in a yellow coat collected me and a few others from the train with a BIG smooch on the cheek. Sooooo adorable! He put me on a tourb bus which would take me around the Ring of Kerry...and let me just say that I have NO idea why my grandparents left this part of the country for Chicago because it is absolutely georgous! The mountains, the Dingle Peninsula, Dingle Bay, The Atlantic and the many islands just off the coast. Words cannot convey the perfection of God's creation here. You will just have to see my pictures...and believe me, I have TONS of pictures as the driver stopped almost every half hour or so at scenic points for us to get off the bus and take some snapshots. I learned a lot about this part of the coutnry on this trip. I got to See David O'Connel's birthplace. He was the man who fought to make Catholics treated fairly and not as second class citizens. I also saw the place where Queen Victoria had a royal picnic when she visited the island for the only time back in the 1600's. I was not happy to hear about the reputation that Kerry men apparently have. I won't repeat it, at least not in the words my tour guide used...but apparently Kerry men are "ladies men." The Kennedy's were Kerry men (which makes sense with their reputations), but I really hope the former generations of men in my family steered clear of that because I don't want to be associated with men like that! On a side note, the drive around Kerry prooved quite scary at some points. Mind you, I'm on a coach bus which is zooming around these narrow curvey roads on the side of cliffs where the posted speed limit is 100KM/hour (that is waaaay faster than any USA speed limit if you didn't know). I had a nice time chatting with an Aussie couple and another couple for Georgia as we fear for our lives at some points, and made fun of the driver's driving and bad jokes at others.

It was a long and exhausting train ride back to Dublin that evening. I sat with the Georgian couple and we talked about the state of education and the economy in the states. I had a nice walk from the train station back to my hotel and got to take pictures of the Guinness factory. Very cool. That night, Mike's friend, and now my new friend, Dave to me out for drinks again at a few of Dublin's finest establishments. I didn't get home until almost 1:30am, and I figured that I needed to leave for the aiport at 3:30am to make my flight to Santander so I didb't sleep at all! I am learning that I need to get regular sleep. I'm not in college anymore and this all-nighter thing is kicking my butt. I'm about 5 hours in to my layover in Santander as I write this, I feel like crap, and I'm totally not in a good mood. Sleep=good.

It was kind of funny, as I was leaving Dublin this morning, I was worried that my flight would be delayed or even cancelled because there was a crazy thunder storm hitting the city. It was so bad, that as I walked throught he airport, waterfalls of water were pouring outof the light fixtures and running down the windows inside the airport. It was totally crazy! I thought the airport might get washed away with as much water as was coming inside. I guess it is a good thing that they are building/almost done with a new terminal. This old one definitely needs to go! Now, I am sitting in Santander airport in the midst of 10 hours in hell! I thought about renting a car and exploring the city, but I am just waaay too tired to drive. There is no internet so I can't even mess around on the computer (and I'll have to post this blog later). Perhaps this is a good time to stretch myself across the seats and take a nap...yes, that's what I'll do...

I'll write from Germany in a few days...

So long Ph.D...HELLO EUROPEAN ADVENTURE!

Joy's got the dreamer's disease...Holy Cow I'm going to EUROPE...for a MONTH...all by MYSELF! Sort of... Here I go, watch me run…a hundred miles under the sun…

Gil Baile has a great quote that goes like this..."Dont ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive because what the world needs in people who have come alive." The outcome of my many hours of contemplation of that quote...So long Ph.D. Hello, Europe! As my principal Dave Katzin has reminded me over and over again, I will be getting a waaaaaaay more valuable education gallivanting around Europe for a month...more so that I could ever get sitting in some classroom here in the States. As I like to remind him...My European education, unlike the classroom, will NOT move me up on the pay scale. Lucky for him.

But anyway, it is finally my time to get the heck out of here! (Thanks J.R. for reminding me of that). I have been thinking about some sort of a World adventure for very long time. I love learning about new cultures. I love history. I love just exploring things that are different than the here and now! I’ve always felt the need to march to the beat of my own drummer and but out of here, but something has always kept me close to home. Case in point...Immediately after college when I was living in San Diego, I was contemplating living and teaching there and continuing my mission work in Tijuana, Mexico; but my best friend from high school, Becky needed a kidney, I matched, and due to amazing circumstances, got a job near home and ended up coming back to Chicago (I still have both kidney's btw...long story). The following summer, I had a very rough first year of teaching high school, and as a result had applied to the Peace Core and also to study English Literature and/or Creative Writing at Trinity University in Ireland, but my sister-in-law's cancer had come back and the prognosis didn't look good at that point and I ended up pretty much living back in the burbs for almost 6 months while still maintaining my apt in the city just to help out with the kids and whatnot. I began my Master's Degree at DePaul University which took up 2 years of my life. Had a couple of long-term relationships which held me back. Don't get me wrong...I have not for once ever regretted anything I have done in the past 6 years, and I would not have changed any of the experiences I've had (well...most of them...haha) for the world; and Chicago is a pretty great city. I’ve had a great life here the past 6 years. There are so many things I’m going to miss while done during July…summer concerts and street festivals, going to the beach, hanging out in Michigan at my parents boat, walks up and down Clark Street, sitting outside at cafes and just writing or reading, friends’ BBQ’s…soooooo many things. I totally willing to give all of this up for my European Summer Adventure, but once again, there is something much bigger that is making me want to stay home. My grandma went into the hospital with some sort of stomach infection 2 days ago. I went to visit her yesterday and she was completely nauseated and depressed, and she just looked plan aweful. It made me so depressed that I started to cry in the elevator when I left the visit and began thinking that maybe I should cancel my trip. My mother told me ABSOLUTELY NOT!!! She also told me that if something happens to my grandma when I’m gone, she’s not telling me until I get back because of course I would want to come home immediately, but mom said that my grandma would be totally “pissed off” (which if you knew my grandma…is sooooo true) if I cut my adventure short… Mom…that’s crap! I promised not to come home…I’d be soooo angry if grandma passed and I didn’t know so you better tell me! Today she was much better, so keep her in your prayers please : )

So I’m sitting here in my living room waiting for my sister to come and pick me up, thinking about how my sense of adventure has been slowly fading away over the past few years...and I didn't even realize it. I am totally NOT the uninhibited girl I was back in college. Sure, I can blame it on starting life in the real world, needing to be more responsible, growing up, whatever; but there has been a stirring in my soul for a while now, and I just need to get out of the push and pull of everyday life here and explore because there is such a LOT of world to see out there…
What followed was...this trip started as an idea one day, and 1 week later the trip was completely booked. I'm extremely excited, but at the same time I haven't quite gotten to the point where it has set in that I am actually going...well, not until I look at my credit card statement and the "oh s**t" factor hits me HAHA!

My friend Josh is the one who really opened this can of worms almost a year ago... I first met Josh and his brother almost exactly a year ago at Andersonville's Midsommer Fest. We were listening to Mike and Joe (great festival band btw) and we just started talking...that night ended up being the first of many adventures Josh would take me on...this one climbing to the rooftop of the Drake Hotel via the fire escape. What followed were several more hotel roof tops, sneaking into major concerts at Northerly Island, late nights of billboard climbing and dance parties etc etc...Haiti was another eye opener to this. That trip was the first for me in over 5 years...and I had never been so clear on something that God was calling me to do more so that this trip. And well, you all know what kind of adventures I got "STUCK" in there. If not...read my blog archives from August 2008. There was one specific moment where I can remember feeling completely me and completely uninhibited. We were all huddled in the back of the taptap heading to the orphanage. The rain was coming down hard...so hard it was stinging. Everyone was trying to get out of the wind and stinging rain drops and I just put on my sun glasses to keep the rain out of my eyes, stood up and took it all in! That picture is my current profile pic on facebook. The comments attached to it are about how I'm living it up and everyone else is huddled together like sissys! I mean...seriously! When is the next time I will ever be in the back of a pick-up during a hurricane!?!?! I've never felt more alive, more in harmony with God and with the world than at that moment.

So here is my European plan…

I leave Sunday, June 28th (TODAY) for Dublin. I'll be in Dublin for a few days, sightseeing, meeting up with some friends of friends, heading down to Country Kerry where my family is from, and possibly visiting with the church plant Parkview planted there last year. On July 2, I fly to Santander, Spain to meet up with Ale. I have a 10 hour layover there where I plan to practice my Spanish at a local cafe and/or head to the beach and journal for a while before Ale and I fly to Dusseldorf, Germany. Ale has a friend in Dusseldorf so we plan to explore that city before taking a bus to Berlin for a few days. I'm super excited to drive up the Rhine and see that part of the country. I hear it is beautiful. On July 6, we head to Frankfurt where we will catch a plane to Prague. I'm most looking forward to seeing this city. Everyone I know in Europe says this is the best city in Europe. We will be in Prague until July 8 when we will take an overnight train to Vienna. We will spend a couple of days in Vienna, including a day trip to Salzburg where we will go on the Sound of Music tour...sooooooo very excited about that. On July 11, we fly back to Dusseldorf, and then back to Bilbao, Spain as Ale has to work that week. I'll spend the night of July 11 at her place before flying off to Rome all by myself for a few days on the 12. I'm very excited to see Rome too. While there, I hope to meet up with a few friends who are staffing summer project there. These guys were in San Diego with me while I staffed SDSP in 2003. I fly back to Bilbao on July 16 and Ale and I catch a train to Paris the next day for a long weekend in France. My friend Mike will be traveling through France on the 10th on his way to Africa, so I hope to catch dinner or at least meet him at one of those cute little French cafe's you see in the movies before we leave. I'm also excited to visit this part of the continent because my grandfather, who was a medic in General Patton's army in WW2 helped liberate Paris from the Nazis. He later went on up into Holland and I think over into Germany and Austria, but it will just be neat to be in the places where he was. After France, Ale and I head back to Bilbao that Sunday, where I leave her for good. On Monday, July 20, I fly off to London which is where I'll end my trip. I have already booked 2 Broadway shows in the West End Theater District and a tour that will take me to see Stonehenge, Shakespeare's and Jane Austen's birthplace, as well as some castle. I head back to the States, via a layover in Dublin (my gateway to Europe) on July 28, just in time for Kulovitz's wedding the following day. Wow!

Be sure to check back as I plan to blog about each city I visit. And also check on facebook for pictures as I go…

“Welcome to the planet, Joy. Welcome to existence! …I dare you to move!” ~Switchfoot

What happens in the Bahamas...

So I have failed to blog about the rest of my 5 days in the Bahamas...and for good reason. Let's just file most of it under "What happens in the Bahamas, stays in the Bahamas..." Seems to be a running theme with my family and these islands. Need I refresh your memories on when the 5 O'Keefe kids, the 3 Padgett kids, and our significant others took a cruise to Nassau 2 1/2 years ago for my brother's 40th birthday. We like to file that experience under "What happened on the Fascination, stays on the Fascination..." (innocent smile)

But here is what I can tell you...

Thursday, Tina literally worked ALL DAY! and I literally sat on the beach ALL DAY! I think I finally started to wind down that day. The need to "constantly be doing something" finally started to subside...maybe because I was so thoroughly entertained by my sister's crazy bride and her crazy tattooed entourage (and their cute little puppy) with all of the drunk antics at the beach...swimming, volleyball...yes, quite an entertaining bunch. They asked me to play at one point, but I wasn't drinking and they were totally jungle-ballers...I knew I would just get annoyed. I'm kind of high-maintenance when it comes to athletic competition. : ) The wedding party definitely provided me with hours of entertainment over the next couple of days. I even found out from hotel staff-turned friends later on that the bride wet her bed one night. Yikes!

Friday was much of the same...laying out on the beach, reading, and watching the wedding party...I got through a good portion of C.S. Lewis's "The Problem of Pain" and finished "A Grief Observed." His works have really been speaking to me. He dissects matter of faith so succinctly, so intentionally, and yet so honestly in his reservations that it is almost impossible to question his logic because he describes it so thoroughly. I guess that is the product and matter of execution for an atheist-turned-Christian. You've got to dig into and sort out all aspects of a topic before you can really put your heart and soul into it. Anyway, I'm not ready to comment on what I've been processing through yet, but let me just say that what I thought was my so-called "grief and pain" is really not mine at all. It is really someone else's' inner issues whose faith is built on a house of cards, and trying to make me believe that mine is too...but my so-called house of cards while initially shaken, will not be moved. Perhaps it is more sold that I've been led to believe. God kind of rocks like that.

But back to my vacation...Friday night was definitely an interesting experience. Tina dragged me to this show where twin brothers impersonated famous singers like Barbara Streisand, Elton John, Cher and some others. The show was one of several events planned for a group of journalists who were visiting the hotel. I was invited to several of these functions as my sister was entertaining a journalist from "Modern Bride" this trip. The show was interesting to say the least. Barbara was great. Elton was OK. Cher was scandalously dressed and let's just say that I have no idea how he/she managed to hide her junk in that outfit. I felt a little dirty even trying to look and see how it was done. Kasper (event planner at the resort) and Justin (an executive chef at the resort) who showed up in true Bahamian fashion-LATE to the show spent a lot of her performance trying to explain it to me, but I am still just really confused as to how that was even possible and let's just leave it at that.

After the performance, Tina, Kasper, Justin and I went to a club called 22 Above (I think). Boy was I thankful for Kasper and Justin. FINALLY people who were young, fun, and not on their honeymoon! I was soooooo thankful they took me out that night. Kasper is from Amsterdam and has worked for Starwood for a few years now in Miami and in the Bahamas. He wants to go to New York when his visa is up, but I think he should come to Chicago : ) Justin is from Miami and his wife still lives there. He also did his culinary training in Paris and lived in other parts of Europe for a while! Yeah for new friends who can help me get around while I'm over there in July!!! We had a very good time at the club! There was an excellent Bahamian band playing and we pretty much just hung out, drank and talked most of the night. Tina and Justin decided to be lame and retire early! Kas and I....well, let's just say he's a fun and fantastic guy ; )

The next morning I was invited to go snorkeling with the journalists. Kasper, Jennifer (total sweetheart and in charge of the journalists) and Kirk (who they call the "Director of Fun") were on the excursion too. Unfortunately, I had to be there at 8am and was more than just slightly hung over; so as you can imagine, boating and swimming...uh yah! Actually, it was a lot of fun. I snorkeled at the first reef we stopped at. It was incredibly beautiful. The different design patterns of the reef and the beautiful colors of the fish were AMAZING! At one point, Kasper threw fish food at me and literally hundreds of fish came splashing all around me fighting for it. It felt really weird! Then Kasper got bit by one! HAHA! Serves him right for throwing fish food at me! For the last 2 bot stops, I decided to stay on the boat for and just take pictures. The 2nd stop was another reef which was just as beautiful. It was also on the most Western side of the island where all of the "rich" people live. There was one house that was incredible. It is owned by the 9 West designer. Yes, I took one look at that house and thought to myself "I definitely helped him pay for that!" haha! The last stop of the excursion was where we got to swim with sharks! The captain drove the boat all they way out to the shelf where the ocean drops off from 40 feet to 60,000 feet! Definitely a neat sight to see. The captains dropped shark bait down to the bottom around 40 feet where all the sharks started swarming. I was told they were Reef sharks and some of them were as big as 10 feet long! The divers had to stay at the surface and hold on to a rope so as not to splash around and attract attention from the sharks below. Actually, I should say everyone else swam with the sharks. I decided to keep all of my fingers and toes and stay in the boat; but I did get some pretty awesome pictures and video! Kasper stayed with me. He said he was going on a dive next week, but I think he really just chickened out! When everyone was out of the water, the captain pulled the bait back up and started feeding the sharks, so I have some pretty great pictures of the sharks at the surface fighting each other for food! After the dive, we went to this organic farm for lunch. It was incredible to walk around. This place completely sustains itself with all of the organic produce it produces...I mean literally everything made at the restaurant was grown on the farm...all except for the Gatorade...haha! It was another great place to experience while on the island...I'll post pictures on facebook of all of this soon...

Despite my not feeling so well, hanging out with the journalists that day was fun. I was a journalism major in college, so it was neat to chat with some of the writers and hear about their exciting adventures (aka...what my life "could have been") while diving and later at lunch. Don't worry, I'm not in any hurry to leave teaching! I say "some" of the journalists were cool because a few of them were just plain lame. There was this one guy David who was a freelance travel writer from Canada. He was all talk and no substance. I sat there listening to his stories thinking to myself...he goes to all of these really neat places, but has he ever really discovered the true beauty, the true culture, the true desperation, of these place??? Maybe it was just his MO or my misjudgment of him, but as he talked and talked about places like Cuba or the Dominican Rep, he seemed to have these blinders on that only promoted the stereotypes of what these countries are all about and not the true culture. I wanted to ask him so many questions but I thought I would only get a BS answer. I guess that's why Americans are so shut off from the reality of the rest of the world sometimes...I mean, if he is the type of people disseminating the information about these places, no wonder we all look like morons when it comes to foreign affairs. We are never given the whole story. OK...off my soap box now...There was another guy, Hunter, from Alabama (I think) I don't remember what he wrote for or really even about what, but he was kind of quirky...the kind of guy who seemed up for anything. Anita was awesome. Probably late 30's. Not married. Wrote for "Modern Bride" and a total party girl! I talked to her for maybe 10 minutes (in my nauseated state) before she was inviting me to Miami to take me out...haha! Jennifer was just a total sweetheart. She didn't snorkel so we sat on the boat and just chatted about life most of the morning...she lives near Fort Lauderdale with her husband. We got a long splendidly! And finally, there was Kirk. He works for the resort, is a local Bahamian, and it was interesting to sit with him at lunch and talk about his family, his work, and just his general impressions of growing up on the island and his dreams for the future. All in all, everyone was great and I was thankful for their company.

When I got back to the resort, I took a desperately needed nap and later decided to get off the beach resort and went for a run on the street. For part of the path, there were beautifully landscaped gardens in the middle of the road, and the rest of the road was boarded by cute and brightly-colored English-colonial style homes or hotels. I know this island and many others in the Bahamas are poor, and part of me really wished I could see those parts of the islands; but at the same time I kept trying to tell myself that I'm on VACATION and NOT a mission trip. There is plenty of time for that later...besides, my heart is in Haiti. Philip and Pastor LeFluer would be peeved if I mission hopped to the Bahamas : ) Later that night, I just went and sat by the beach for a while, had some good reflection/prayer time and watched the crazy bride's ceremony and reception. It was really beautiful. Kasper was overseeing a prom at the hotel that night. He had invited me to tag along, but I didn't want to bother him while he was working...plus he was probably super tired too. He didn't get a nap from the weekend's fun; but I did get to see some of the teens all dressed up. Soooo adorable...ahhh the days of prom and sorority formals. I need some place to go to get all dressed up for...

My last day in the Bahamas was spent in Nassau shopping. I did the touristy thing...Senior Frogs, straw market, etc. I discovered that I am slightly addicted to expensive Italian leather. Tina is addicted to jewelry : ) Ha! Later that night, we spent some time in the casino...I gambled my first $5 EVER which sufficiently kept me entertained for about an hour's worth of fun. We headed back to the hotel bar later to watch the NBA finals game. LA won. Booooo! As I am writing this, I am on the plane headed home, and AGAIN I have not had a good experience flying with American Airlines through Miami. Go figure. I won't bore you with the details. It isn't as exciting as say the whole getting stuck in a hurricane in a third world country experience of last August; but I did get to meet a group in Miami's airport who were on their way to Haiti. I talked to a few teenage girls who were super excited. I told them a little bit about my experience and told them to be careful because they might just leave their hearts there as I did after my first trip. It was a nice/fitting way to end this first leg of my summer world adventure....now, back to Chicago for a few days before part 2 begins!!!

T-13 days until Europe...I'm so excited that I can hardly contain myself!!!

Let the Summer World Adventures Begin...First Stop: The Bahamas

Part 1 of my Around the World Summer Adventure has begun. First Stop...Nassau, The Bahamas!

I arrived in Nassua in the Bahamas the night before last. YES...I know...I dediced to forego the Cubs "WE Belive" premier...I know, I know...so out of character for me...to tag along with my sister on her work trip. I needed to get out of Chicago for a while (as if a month in Europe won't be enough!!!), so here I am. Do you remember the "Saved By the Bell" season when Zack and the gang worked at a beach resport for the summer? That's kind of what it feels like for me to be here in the Bahamas. My sister has been working (and dealing with a crazy bridezilla this week I might add)...so I have found myself wandering around the beach and pools, making fast friends with all of the help and learning the ins and outs of the island because everyone else who is here is either really old, or young couples on their honeymoon...gag, and I'm finding it hard to relax and just be still for even just a moment! Don't worry, I'm confident the "relaxing part" will come soon. I've just been running on full speed for the past few months of school now that its gonna take me a few days to settle down!

A part of me is wishing that I was in Haiti. This place is certainly nothing like there. I had a nice chat with LeFluer yesterday morning about going back there in August. I don't think that is going to work out, and after talking with Bucky shortly after, we are going to make the December trip happen instead. The guilt set in on the plane on the way over here. This is my first real vacation in almost 4 years...Sure I've gone to Florida to visit family and I've been to some really cool places on mission trips but those doen't count. The sole purpose of this trip is to get away, clear my mind, and relax for a while. But at the same time, I feel a little guilty that I'm spending the money to come here (and in a few weeks to Europe) and enjoy myself and not to serve the people of the country of Haiti who I love so much...but God isn't making that happen for me this summer...He sent me here, and is sending me to Europe for most of July and I have full faith that I will find Him in all of these places... I also decided to dedicate this summer to the essential works of C.S. Lewis. I finsished "Mere Christianity" yesterday. Heavy stuff that I am still digesting and will most likely be commenting on here in the days to come as I sort through it all in my head. I also began "A Grief Observed" which I'll save my commentary on for now, but may just be exactly what I need to hear from God right now...

I've been to Nassau before, but only on a cruise ship. That experience gave me nothing of what it was really like to be in the Bahamas. When we got in, we took a 20 minute cab ride through a cute little neighborhood, where if I didn't know any better, could have mistaken it for any neighborhood in south Florida, on our way to the hotel. Some of the buildings have a lot of British influcence which is pretty cool, but the new constructon (and there is a lot of it) is all pretty modern American. Everything here, at least in Nassau, is Americanized! They have Starbucks, and Gap, and Bally Total Fitnesses ad Tiffanys! What has happened to the Bahamian (pronounced Bohemian) culture???? AND I'm soooo confused. Everything here is backwards. They drive on the other side of the road. The up and down escalators are switched. The hot and cold water is switched. A lot of other things too...I guess its good practice for Europe, right???

The night we checked in, Tina introduced me to a few coworkers, we dropped our bags in our room and headed straight to the bar where I made fast friends with the Bahamian bartender named Robert who mixed me up a really fabulous Bahamian Sangria...YUM! I managed to convince him to turn on the end of the Cubs game , and later the NBA finals which he was way more excited about, and he entertained us for most of the night (Yes, I realize this statement makes me a hipocrite...wanting American entertainment after complaining about the lack of Bahamian culture...but bear with me here for a second). It was fun to sit and chat with Robert and a few other Bahamians who came around during after-hours. They were super-fun, super-laid back, and I got to hear a lot about what their lives are like living on the island. Here's a bit of random information for you...my electric bill last month was $54. Robert's electric bill last month was over $800. Crazy island electrical company! Last night we came back after dinner and convinced the new bartener, Patrick, to flip to the Big G (WGN) just in time to see the Cubbies lose it in the 9th . Sadness! He mixed me up a yummy "Go Slow Mon" drink which apparently I didn't drink slow enough for the 5 types of Rum he put in it! Whoops! I also met a very lovely couple from New Castle, England, UK last night at the bar who game me a lot of great information on traveling in Europe and who liked to say the word "Brillian" after every phrase and/or sentence! The man used to be in the British Royal Navy...very interesting guy. He was most concerned with making sure that I see a Rugby match while in London. I got all the ins and outs of the game of Rugby from him. He told me all about the UK United team (I think that's what the Irish, English, Scottish, Whales All-Star-ish team was called???) who in case you were wondering are in South African playing their national team right now, AND he also made sure to tell me several times that all Rugby players are rugged and cute! Brilliant! Anyway, back to the Bohamians...I'm glad I'm getting to know real Bahamaian people instead of those fake tourist-nappers who try to sell you stuff. Those people are here too...mainly on the beach and in the casino...they keep calling me "beautiful lady" followed by some sort of proposition for free club tickets to Atlantis or discounts on snorkeling...The same lady tried to sell me a time share 3 times within the span of about 2 hours... I just wanted to look at her after the 3rd inquiry, cock my head to the right and say "Seriously?!?...the fist 2 no weren't didn't convince you? Seriously?!?!?"...whatever! .

The Sheraton Resort here is really beautiful. There are 5 pools scatterd among beautifully lanscaped cliffs and waterfals just steps from the beach and the ocean...literally! One of the pools has a swim-up bar where the bartender takes your order right in the water and you can just hang out on the ledge and drink. On the beach, there are 2 small islands in the distance. You can also see Atlantis. Jet skiers, parasailors or a boat in the distance occassionally makes its way across the view, and this morning I've seen 2 cruise ships come in to the harbor which is probably about 3 or so miles to the East; but otherwise it is pretty private...nothing like the business of Chicago, New Buffalo in MI. or Fort Myers/Naples Beaches which is what I've been used to. I've always enjoyed going to the beach...any beach and taking in all of its beauty, but I've never been a "swim at the beach" person. I'm more of a "must be near the water" person; but the waters here on Cable beach beckoned me in yesterdag. They are so clear and warm, and you can literally see hundreds of little tropical fish swimming around you...freaked me out at first, but I got over it...Last night for Tina's birthday, T, her coworker Todd (who is hysterical!!!), and I went to Bob Marley's place for dinner just down the street. This home turned Bed and Breakfast used to be the retreat of the Marley family. The atmosphere was very cool. Of course they had Marley family music playing, lots of family pictures adorning all of the rooms; but the style wasn't that prosaic "hippi-regae, weed-smoking" cliche that everyone in the States seems to make out the whole Bob Marley aura. It was all quite sofisticated actually. We sat out on the back portch for dinner and watched the sunset. Island food is AMAZING. I had lobster and pumpkin soup as a starter. For my mail mean, I had the fresh catch with a sweet potato polenta and some sort of pea/zuchini/pineapple chutney in a sweet sauce (certainly not Haitian food). Bohemian food has this amazing mix of sweet and spice. I can't really describe it properly.

Danielle will appreciate this...I'm sitting here on the beach now just a few feet away from these young girls who are speaking Portugese. I think they might be journalists...they seem to be working on something. Maybe I'll ask later. But it is bring back fond memories of Daniel, Nelson, Diego and FERNANDO in San Diego! :::sigh:::

Well, its time for me to start exploring...Until I get bored again....